Mythbusters! Mysteries of the Bouquet Unlocked

The bouquet from the Johnson wedding:)

It's been a few weeks since my last post but now I'm back! Today, I'd like to address one of the oldest of wedding traditions, the tossing of the bridal bouquet. For centuries brides have been throwing their bouquets with the hope that their marital happiness would be spread to the lucky single lady who caught it. Even today, in modern weddings, single ladies still fight over the charmed item.

The tradition of the bridal bouquet supposedly started in France in the 14th century. It was considered lucky if a wedding guest got a piece of the bride's clothing or wedding paraphernalia. Of course that got pretty unorganized and fairly dangerous for the bride (imagine everyone at your wedding running toward you like you were the last golden ticket) so they decided to take one item, call it lucky and set up a time where it could be open game for all. They even decided to go as far as to split the groups into guys and girls by including a garter catching contest. (Yay for organized fun!) But the question remains, does the bouquet really bring love and marriage to the catcher?

In my experience, the answer is no. In the past 10 or 11 years, I have caught nine bridal bouquets. Let me repeat that number, NINE. I don't remember specifics of the weddings at which I caught these bouquets but I can definitely name a few of the couples: Brandey and Dino Fine,  Amber and Dustin Coble, Tasha and Ephraim Mathis and Becka and Dustin Johnson. (Those are just a few, it's been a long decade;) Seeing as how I am still a single woman, and I have quite a few bouquets under my belt, I would definitely say the legend of the bouquet is a...MYTH!

Now, it has been suggested to me by quite a few people that the legend might be overthrown or even reversed by the amount of times I've caught bouquets. That is, once I've passed a certain number, the luck actually becomes a curse, and I will remain single longer. I'm not sure how true that is, but I do know the bouquet doesn't always come with a husband, at least in my experience.

Before readers start throwing rocks at me and claiming that I'm a Scrooge, let me clarify. I'm only telling of my experiences with the bouquet legend. I'm not trying to crush dreams like running around telling kids there's no Santa, or pulling a Joe Montana and debunking America's favorite Cinderella story (Rudy!).  The tradition of throwing the bridal bouquet is fun and I enjoy the "what ifs" and competition of it. (Why do you think I kept participating?) And who knows? Maybe 10 will be my lucky number. All I'm saying is don't get too down hearted over a supposed tradition. If it's God's will that you get married, it'll happen. And no floral decor is going to influence Him either way!

I will now answer the question that follows when telling people about all my bouquets, "What the heck do you do with all those bouquets?!" The answer's pretty simple. If they're real, I either give them away (there's always a flower girl who would love to have flowers:), or I take them home and use them as decorations til they die.  For the others, the fake ones, I usually give them away or eventually toss em. I do, however, still have one bouquet in my room that I use for decoration, the one in the picture above. Flowers make everything a little better. So even if you don't get a husband, your day's still a little brighter by getting to witness one of God's greatest expressions of love, His beauty reflected in His creation. So ladies, play on! Next time you go to a wedding, compete. And when you catch a bouquet, think of me and imagine me patting you on the back saying, "Well done!" Maybe I'll be competing for YOUR bouquet not long after, God willing ;)

My Top 5 Favorite Weddings/Wedding Memories

It's been called to my attention that while I've tried to use this blog to be informative and entertaining, I've spent most of my time telling my readers the things I HATE about weddings, without giving much insight into what I LOVE about weddings. This was not my intention but as I look back at past posts, I realize how true that statement is. That is why I plan on focusing my next few posts on what I love about weddings.

In this post, I would like to mention my top 5 favorite weddings/ wedding memories. Of course, this is a difficult feat seeing as how I can't remember EVERY wedding I've ever attended. But I have narrowed it down to the first five that popped into my head. I have tried to include pictures for enjoyment purposes but some weddings took place pre-Mark Zuckerberg's big break so I have no access to them. (If you read this and wonder why your wedding is not on the list, I apologize. This post is no indication of how I feel about you or your wedding.)


#5 Toni McDowell and Travis Laney
 I have known Toni McDowell my entire life. She was my baby sitter at a young age and a close friend of the family since before I was born. Her wedding meant a lot to me, not only because she is one of my longest and closest friends but it was the first wedding I got to dance at. Growing up, the weddings I attended were held in churches so there was no dancing at the reception and, quite frankly, that was still in the time when dancing was considered "a sin" in most Southern Baptist churches. However, at the age of 14, I got to DANCE at Toni McDowell's wedding. I just remember it being the most fun I'd ever had at a wedding and I've never forgotten the excitement.


#4 Monica Hong and Shaun Stotyn
For those of you who know me well, you know that I have spent quite a bit of time in the beautiful state of Vermont! I first went to Vermont in 2006 when I spent the summer working for a church plant. It was then I first met Monica Hong and Shaun Stotyn. I immediately became good friends with both of them as individuals and spent plenty of time getting to hang out with them throughout the whole summer. I went again in the summer of 2008, continuing to grow my friendship with both and through all that time the two of them were just friends (and quite frankly, they got on each other's nerves a lot;) Then, all of a sudden, something happened. I was back in Oklahoma and, through casual conversation with Monica over a year ago, found out that she and Shaun were....DATING! Of course I was shocked but was thrilled that the next year I would get to fly back to Vermont to witness two of my best friends marry each other. It was an amazing wedding and it meant so much to get to be there for it. Two people, who had meant so much to me as individuals were finding a life partner in each other. It was such a blessing to see. Not to mention, I got to go back to my second home and witness their union with my second church family, it was almost like I never left. I don't think I'll ever forget how special it was to me.

Me and "Shun" (He's Canadian *shrug*)

Monica and I :)

#3 Cathryn Good and Travis Jackson
Cat Good was my best friend in high school and living proof that a feminist could fall in love! All throughout high school, Cat was determined to never marry and live her life the way she wanted. At that point we were complete opposites and even though she played the role of supportive friend, I knew she found my desire to get married a little ridiculous and annoying. However, Cat never imagined that she could fall so hard, so quickly until she met Travis Jackson in college. After she met him, it was all over; she knew she would marry him and wanted to do so as soon as humanly possible. I was fortunate enough to be her bridesmaid and still feel so honored that I got to be a part of that day. I've never seen a wedding with so much of the bride's personality thrown into. Her decorations fit her, and the service was completely lighthearted and comedic! I loved every minute of it. It also taught me a very important lesson, God's will is above our own. We can fight him, like we fight love, all we want; but when He calls us, we can't help but become putty in His hands. Even though I might put up a fight, one day I'll find that guy and I won't stand a chance at winning that battle. Thanks Cat Jackson for unknowingly teaching me that. :)

Lauren, Cat and I at Cat's wedding:)

#2 Jennifer Petete and Michael Garner

The wedding in which my sweet cousin Jennifer married my awesome cousin-in-law Michael is one of my favorite weddings of all time. Not only was I excited about my cousin getting to marry the man we all knew God had in mind for her, but my whole family was there! Every member of the Petete clan was in attendance and it was one of the last times we have all been together in the same place, that I can remember. (Inevitably, at least 1 person can't make it for a holiday.) It was the first wedding I had attended where the bride and groom took all the pictures before the wedding so they could be present at the entire reception, inspiring me to one day do the same. Not to mention, they had the best groom's cake that I've ever had in my life, (and I've had quite a few!) This wedding was also special because it was the day we met Chris Hardin, my cousin Mandy's husband. He came to the wedding so that he could meet us all, and asked us individually if he could marry Mandy (as far as I know, Mandy had no clue he was doing this.) So not only did I get ONE great cousin-in-law to take care of my precious cousins, I was getting TWO! It was a very special day:)

#1 Jayme Petete and Kenny Reinbold
My #1 favorite wedding memory of all time comes from my cousin Jayme's wedding (younger sister of #2 wedding bride.) The wedding was wonderful and I was so proud to be a bridesmaid at the wedding Jayme and I had talked about our entire lives. However, my favorite part of the wedding had nothing to do with the ceremony. If you go back to wedding #5 you'll remember that growing up I wasn't allowed to dance and that dancing was regarded as "a sin." As I got older, things had changed a bit, everyone was ok with dancing...except my dad. Dad was always convicted that dancing was something he shouldn't take part in and so for most of my life, I figured I'd never have a father/daughter dance at my wedding, and like every wedding before, I figured I wouldn't have one at Jayme and Kenny's wedding either.

When I got to the Reinbold reception, my mom took me aside and told me to ask dad to dance. My response was, "No way!" It's hard enough being rejected by all the single guys in the room, it's even worse being rejected by your own dad, lol! I also told her I respected dad's leading to abstain from dancing as a way of sanctification and refused to push him to do anything he didn't believe in. However, mom kept emphasizing that I REALLY needed to ask dad to dance. Of course I continued to avoid asking him, until a slow song came on and he asked me. I was completely surprised and honestly had no idea how to react. We danced at least two songs together and I knew he could tell I wanted to cry. I had always hoped to be able to dance with my dad and finally, after years of trying to persuade him, he finally asked me to dance. After that, I didn't care how many single guys were in the room nor did I  wonder how many invitations to dance I'd receive. All that mattered is that I finally got to dance with my dream dance partner. My dad.

Me and dad dancing

My favorite picture of us, ever!